Pakistan's alleged 'Washington lackey' fears for life

Pakistan's former ambassador to the United States, Husain Haqqani (center), exits the Supreme Court in Islamabad on Dec. 22, 2011.

By Msnbc.com staff and wire services

Pakistan's former ambassador to the United States fears he will be murdered if he leaves the sanctuary of the prime minister's official residence after he was branded a "Washington lackey" and a "traitor," according to a new interview.

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph newspaper, Husain Haqqani said that "certain powerful quarters" in Pakistan -- the paper said this was a reference to the country's ISI intelligence agency -- were behind the claims against him.

Haqqani is at the center of a scandal that threatens to topple Pakistan's government over an alleged request to the U.S. to help stop a coup by the army, following the American raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

In October, a U.S. businessman of Pakistani origin, Mansoor Ijaz, wrote an article for the Financial Times newspaper claiming Haqqani had written a memo to U.S. Admiral Mike Mullen, who was then chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, supposedly promising to replace Pakistan's national security hierarchy with people favorable to the U.S. in exchange for help in reining in the military.

Ijaz, who claimed he had been asked to convey the message to Mullen, further alleged that Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari supported the move. The Financial Times operates behind a paywall, but Ijaz also wrote an article for Pakistan's The News in November describing his allegations.

"I'm a guest of the prime minister (Yousuf Raza Gilani) with whom I have had a long-standing political association. There are clear security concerns given the hysteria generated against me. Staying at the prime minister's house is the safest option," Haqqani told the Telegraph in an interview published Wednesday.

"My good friend Salman Taseer (the late governor of Punjab) was killed by a security guard because he heard in the media that the governor had blasphemed. I'm being called a traitor and an American lackey in the media with the clear encouragement of certain powerful quarters even though I've not been charged legally with anything," he added.

He said that he had left the prime minister's house twice, once to go to court and another time to visit the dentist because he had toothache.

"The president and prime minister are firmly standing behind me and the government is not going anywhere. This is psychological warfare against the government," he told the Telegraph.

Amb. Husain Haqqani discusses whether the Pakistani government or military knew about Osama bin Laden's whereabouts.

In December, Zardari, who was married to former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated in 2007, said people should pay tribute to her memory by guarding against anti-democratic conspiracies, an apparent reference to tensions over the memo scandal.

He said his wife's death was also a conspiracy against Pakistani democracy.

"I therefore urge all the democratic forces and the patriotic Pakistanis to foil all conspiracies against democracy and democratic institutions," said Zardari in a statement sent to reporters.